Konoha: The Soul King from the Uchiha Clan

Chapter 118 Best Tool

A light rain fell in the evening. As the saying goes, "one autumn rain brings one chill," and the drizzling rain fell on the streets and alleys, courtyards and rooftops of Konoha Village, creating a cold and desolate atmosphere.

The dining room was brightly lit, and the three of them, master and apprentice, sat together drinking and eating.

After finishing her meal, Hongdou was still thinking about Hong, so she took an umbrella and went to Hong's house. The two of them ignored the cold autumn wind and chatted over tea under the eaves.

"Now that the Fourth Hokage has passed away, would you, teacher, be willing to contend for the Hokage position?"

"Are you speaking from your own perspective or from the Uchiha's perspective?" Orochimaru asked with a half-smile.

"Is there any difference?"

"While my stance is not entirely aligned with that of the Uchiha, it is generally the same."

"Is the Uchiha clan pressuring you?"

"Not yet, but I'll try to find out what the teacher thinks sooner or later."

"What do you mean, teacher?"

Orochimaru picked up his teacup, took a sip, and looked toward the location of the Sarutobi clan. His gaze was somewhat complicated. Seeing this, Uchiha Gen did not urge him on.

After a while, Orochimaru said, "I want to see if he will choose me if the Fourth Hokage is gone, and Jiraiya and Tsunade are unwilling..."

In Konoha today, besides Jiraiya and Tsunade, Orochimaru is the only option for the Fifth Hokage, unless Hiruzen Sarutobi takes over himself.

"Does that mean we should do nothing and just wait passively?"

"Yes."

"What if I choose you?"

"Then I'll be the fifth generation. At worst, I'll be busy and tired."

"What if we don't choose you?"

"Then... well, the relationship is severed. We are only master and disciple in name, but not in reality."

"We can't wait forever; there has to be a limit, right?"

"Once Konoha stabilizes, the matter of the Fifth Hokage will inevitably be put on the agenda, and then things will become clear."

Uchiha Gen nodded slightly, his eyes fixed on the raindrops falling in the courtyard. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and remained calm and composed.

Orochimaru asked, somewhat surprised, "Aren't you going to try and persuade me?"

If he actively seeks to become the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade and Jiraiya certainly won't oppose him; with a little effort, he can gain their support.

With his own power and supporters, as well as the backing of the Uchiha clan, even his teacher might not be able to suppress him if there were no competitors...

If he becomes the Fifth Hokage, his disciples will become Hokage disciples, enjoying a high status and limitless future, with guaranteed positions among the higher-ups of Konoha.

The Uchiha clan will also benefit greatly!

How could I not advise my disciple, who is so ambitious and driven by self-interest?

In their pursuit of immortality, perhaps no one in the world is more driven by self-interest than this master and disciple.

Immortality is the greatest desire in the world!

"The teacher has made his choice, and as his disciple, I should naturally respect it," Uchiha Gen said with a faint smile.

Orochimaru laughed upon hearing this, but his laughter suddenly froze as he scrutinized Uchiha Gen...

"No, no, that might be part of the reason, but it's definitely not the main reason."

"Haha, as expected of Orochimaru-sensei, you saw through me."

"Actually, it's mainly about improving my skills. I feel like I'm about to break through and reach a new level."

"If you're strong enough, whether you're a Hokage's disciple or not isn't that important."

He's had some free time lately, and he wants to take advantage of this time to collect enough souls in one go so that he can awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan in one fell swoop.

"Hmm?" Orochimaru raised an eyebrow.

"Heh heh... You're pretty confident, aren't you? Want to have a spar?"

"We can spar, but there's no need."

"Hahaha……"

Orochimaru burst into laughter upon hearing this; his disciple always said such amusing things.

"Let's get down to business," Uchiha Gen said with a serious expression.

"Is it serious business?"

"I knew you wouldn't come looking for me for no reason. You usually have something to say when you come to see me."

"Speak, what is it?"

"Is your research running into trouble?"

Uchiha Gen shook his head and said, "No, the research is going very smoothly."

"What I want to say is, teacher, are you aware that on the night of the Nine-Tails' attack, a group of special creatures transformed into Hidden Mist spies and lured away Konoha's Anbu?"

Orochimaru immediately grasped the key point.

"A special creature?"

"That's right, they are a group of humanoid creatures that are entirely white. They look like humans, but they are not human."

"These special creatures have now been sent to the medical department for research by the ANBU. From what I've heard, these special creatures are related to Wood Release."

Hearing this, Orochimaru became completely interested. This afternoon, when he went to the Hokage Building, the old man also mentioned that the mysterious guy who attacked Konoha possessed both the Mangekyou Sharingan and Wood Release, two powers that could quell chaos.

"You want to come and study it?"

"That's right, doesn't the teacher want to?"

"I don't need any more, just two for me, teacher."

He had secretly used his soul perception to search for any trace of White Zetsu in Konoha, but unfortunately he found nothing.

This situation could mean either that the soul sense couldn't detect the White Zetsu in the Mayfly Technique state, or that there were no White Zetsu in Konoha Village.

He didn't believe that the thing that could be used to exploit the Death God's bug didn't have a soul; he was more inclined to believe that the White Zetsu's soul was different from that of ordinary people.

But a soul is still a soul, and there's no reason why it shouldn't be detected by soul perception. Therefore, he is more inclined to believe that there are currently no White Zetsu in Konoha Village.

In fact, Gen Uchiha's guess was correct; Obito had not yet had time to send a new White Zetsu to Konoha.

He did want the White Zetsu's corpse for research, but unlike traditional research, he wanted to see if he could possess the body of the Soul-Soul Fruit and thus revive the White Zetsu's corpse...

The Soul-Soul Fruit cannot turn human corpses into Homies, but the corpses of special creatures like White Zetsu might be able to.

If possible, then there's no need to wait for Orochimaru to develop the Reanimation Jutsu, a technique for seizing bodies. He could use the White Zetsu Homies to continuously collect souls for him throughout the ninja world.

White Zetsu can create chakra, so he can use techniques like the Mayfly Technique and the Disguise Technique. He can also teach some taijutsu, ninjutsu, and genjutsu.

Moreover, it doesn't need to eat, drink, or relieve itself, and its efficiency is maximized, making it the perfect tool!

With his main body added in, it won't be long before he gathers the souls needed to advance to the Mangekyou Sharingan...

To verify this hypothesis, a White Zetsu corpse is needed, which is difficult to obtain given his status; therefore, Orochimaru is the only option.

The Root organization would definitely be very interested in such a strange creature as White Zetsu, and would certainly have a share of it, and Orochimaru is the vice-minister of Root.

"Such an interesting creature, of course I want to."

"If you have any extra, I can give you two."

"Thank you, teacher," Uchiha Genshin said sincerely.

"No, I can't hold back anymore."

"I'm going to find Danzo right now. The Root Base must have some in stock. I'll start studying it tonight."

"You can tidy up this place, and then you can go back to sleep if you want, or sleep here if you want."

"I'm leaving now."

Having said that, Orochimaru, his face beaming with excitement, downed the tea in one gulp, then jumped up into the drizzling courtyard, his body quickly sinking into the ground.

Orochimaru quite liked this kind of cold and damp weather.

Uchiha Gen: "..."

No wonder Orochimaru has achieved so much; look at his boundless enthusiasm for scientific research...

Indeed, only passion can lead to the pinnacle!

After calmly finishing his tea, tidying up the table and tea set, Uchiha Gen rushed into the cold autumn rain and quickly leaped back home.

It can protect him from the wind and rain, but it's unnecessary; the occasional indulgence in the rain and wind brings him joy...

(End of this chapter)